21 Scars
by An Angel in Darkness
Summary: Over the past few months," I said. "I became close to a guy that saw the best in me, something even I wasn't able to do. He's sweet, sensitive, and always there when I need a shoulder to cry on. His name is Logan Mitchell." Logan/OC
1. Breathe

*****Hey all! This is a TOTALLY new, TOTALLY improved version of 21 Scars! The problem? What I want to happen is already happening in other Fics. So I'm kinda screwed! ****Fun… So while I attempt to work that out, enjoy this! ****Oh, and italics are present time, and un-italics is the story Logan and Larissa are telling.*****

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Logan's POV

"_This is insane," James exclaimed. "Where did she go?" _

"_I don't get it!" Carlos said. He didn't get a lot of things, but this was something I didn't even understand. _

"_Look guys," I said, trying not to cry. "I don't know _where_ Larissa is now, but I think I know _why_ she left. I have a note from her here saying she was going to 'get help'." _

_Kendall wasn't satisfied with that. _

"_You have to know something more than that. You're her closest friend."_

"_I know a lot that you don't!" I said back, choking on my own tears. "I just can't believe she's gone." _

_James, who usually over dramatized things, calmed me down. _

"_Logan, we all hate that Larissa's gone, but you have to go back to the beginning and tell us everything you know."_

_I took a deep breath and started the story. _

-----

Larissa's POV

_An assistant led into a room with five other girls. I knew how these places worked; after all, I was a veteran. Some of these girls were druggies, some had eating disorders, or maybe someone was a cutter like me. Residential treatment facilities were places where people with all types of problems were sent to get better. I walked right into a group therapy session. The therapist introduced me, and told why I was there. She asked me to say a few words._

"_I hate to be back here, but what can I say? I want to change, and I need some help."_

_The therapist gave an encouraging nod. The other girls just scowled. _

"_It's great that you want to stop cutting, Larissa, but tell us, how you started up. I mean, again. I know you were here, what, two years ago?" She checked her clipboard. "Right, when you were fourteen, but why are you here again?"_

_I sighed, but I talked anyway, I was kinda forced to. _

"_It's a long story, and it's not all mine. But I'll start with the simple stuff." _

_The sad part was that the horror story that was most of my life was the easy stuff._

"_My mother is dead," I said. "and I hated her for years before she died. She was a marijuana addict, and she started smoking around the time she and my father started fighting. My dad left us last year. He abused my mom, and I was glad he left. My mom and I kind of slipped away from society. I didn't go to school and we got by with the money I earned from songwriting, but the checks were few and far between. I also had a part time job at a place called the Palm Woods as a maid. When cash was really tight, I sang in the streets for an extra buck or two."_

_One of the girls actually faked a yawn, like this was some kind of joke. _

"_I dealt with my parents fighting for a while, but then I cracked. It was just too much. I needed relief. Two years ago, I started cutting myself. It was an endorphin rush, and I didn't think about the consequences. But, before long, a teacher caught me cutting in the girl's bathroom at school. I was sent here, and I went through a crapload of therapy to get better. I got my scars medically removed, and you'd never know I used to carve my arms up by just looking at me."_

_The girls still looked bored as hell. _

"_Through the past couple of months, I've gotten close to someone that helped me a lot." _

_An unnaturally skinny girl rolled her eyes. _

"_So this guy 'helped' you, yet you're back here? That doesn't make sense."_

_She was right…_

"_Let's just say I would be a lot worse off if it wasn't for him. He saw the best in me, something even I wasn't able to do. His name is Logan Mitchell."_

_The same skinny girl interrupted me again._

"_Is this some sappy, dramatic love story I'm gonna wish I didn't have to sit through?"_

_I nodded._

"_I'll make it as painless as possible." I said. I was used to the bitchy attitude of these girls. I knew how to handle it. _

_She still looked annoyed, but I started the story anyway. _


	2. New Beginning

Logan's POV

I glanced at my watch as I stepped onto the elevator. "Crap," I thought. I knew I wasn't going to make it." The guys headed off to school without me that Friday morning, and I knew I was going to be late. I only had two minutes to get to school, and the sweaty early-morning exercisers were all staying on different floors. What a joy…

Eventually, the elevator got down to the lobby. I hurried out and checked my watch again: 8:31. One minute late and-

SLAM!

I collided with someone. My backpack practically exploded. Pencils and notebooks flew everywhere. The girl I crashed into smiled.

"That's what we call an epic fail. Next time, use the zippers on that thing."

She helped me put my stuff back. I got a good look at her, and was surprised at her kindness.

Purple and red extensions streaked her naturally brown hair. She had side bangs, which almost hid her left eye. Her right eye was surrounded by a pitch-black sea of eyeliner. A thick spiked bracelet and skull-ridden charm bracelet covered her wrists. She was wearing two necklaces; a plain black beaded one and one with a lightning bolt hanging from the chain. Her nails matched her eyeliner. She was wearing a gray and red hoodie with a glittered bat wings on the front and a t-shirt that said 'Vampaneze Rock.' She had ripped black skinny jeans on, and to top it all off, she was wearing purple combat boots. Despite her outfit, the craziest part of her was her eyes. She had beautiful bright green eyes that were her focal point.

"I'm Larissa," she told me. I nodded and shoved some pencils back into my bag.

"Logan," I managed to say in my rush.

I caught sight of a clock: 8:33.

"So, Logan," she said. "I've seen you around here before."

"Yeah, I've seen you, too." I said, interested in talking to her, but choosing to hurry to school.

"I also hear you're in a band…Gustavo Rocque's 'next big thing.'"

I shrugged and put another notebook back in my bag.

"That's really cool." She said. "Some people spend years here and never make it as far as you have."

I nodded again. I really would have liked to stay and talk to her, but I was then five minutes late for school.

"Thanks," I said, and threw my bag over my shoulder. I ran straight to school, feeling a little guilty for leaving Larissa hanging. There was something special that I liked about her, but I didn't realize the significance of it just yet. I slipped into class unnoticed, thank God, and pulled out my math binder. There was something stuck to it. It was a post-it note with a number on it.

Larissa Davis  
818-555-3054

-----

"He shoots, he scores! We win again!" Carlos yelled. "Victory ride down the swirly slide!"

"Damn it, Logan!" James yelled. We had just lost to Kendall and Carlos in table hockey…for the third time. I just couldn't concentrate.

"I mean, you only had to be goalie! It's one freaking playing, and with your apparent super-genius brain, I thought you could at least-" James' diva fit faded out.

All I could think about was Larissa. The image of her smiling never left my thoughts. Her eyes were so perfect, so pure, if only I knew if what happened that morning was a façade or not.

"Hey, Logan," Kendall said, breaking my train of thought. "You don't seem 'all here'. Your head's somewhere else. What's going on?" I figured I should tell them.

"See, I met this girl, and-"

"Whoa! You met a girl?" Carlos asked, so stunned that I ignored him.

"Yes, Carlos, I met a girl. I bumped into her this morning, and she gave me her phone number." Kendall and James were now as stunned as Carlos. Me getting a girl's phone number was a foreign concept.

"Holy crap…" Kendall said, still in shock. "You, Logan, the smart-ass geek, got a girl's number?"

I wanted to ignore him as I did Carlos, but I couldn't resist what happened next.

"Yes, self-absorbed jackass." I said to Kendall with a smirk. James laughed.

"It's harsh, but so true!" Kendall wanted revenge.

"Is it, Bandana Man?" James stopped laughing.

"So, back to that girl you met!"

I told them everything that happened, but I was hoping for a more…positive reaction.

"Is this a joke?" Carlos asked.

"Yeah, combat boots are so last year!" James said. We all stared at him. And he claimed he wasn't gay…

"She sounds pleasant." Kendall joked. "Seriously, Logan, I don't think you should call her."

"I think she's a drug dealer!" Carlos added. "Yeah, and she gave you her number so you could buy crack from her!" He continued on his wild fantasy, thinking he actually made a breakthrough. Poor, misguided, slide-loving child.

I didn't care what the guys thought of Larissa. I wanted to call her. The problem was that Carlos' drug dealer thing could actually be close. I knew looks could be deceiving, but there was no way in hell that Larissa could be the type of girl I would date. Not that there was anyone to compare her to, but still, she couldn't be that kind and considerate all the time and dress like black is the only color left on the planet.


	3. The Only Exception

Larissa's POV

I quietly hummed to myself as a cleaned off the last of another countless room. I didn't think anything of it when I moved onto another apartment: 2J. I walked in and started dusting off a glass table. The apartment, which was seemingly and supposed to be empty, wasn't. Without warning, a familiar face strolled groggily out of another room. It was Logan. He hadn't changed at all in the since he crashed into me a few days before. In fact, it was the best I'd ever seen him. Why, you ask?

He was in nothing but his boxers.

"HOLY SHIT!" we screamed simultaneously. Logan because a girl he barely knew was randomly in his apartment, me because of how incredibly hot he looked.

He ducked behind the couch so I could only see his head.

"What the hell are you doing here!?" he asked.

"I'm a maid, I clean stuff. That's how it works!" I said.

"Well, God, shouldn't you know that its creepy and stalkerish to walk in on people when they're in their UNDERWEAR!?"

I'd make a habit of it if I was cleaning this apartment every morning, but I knew that wasn't the answer he was looking for.

"Well, I normally don't! I didn't know you were in here, Logan!"

"Yeah…well maybe next time you should-OH MY GOD!"

He froze, panicked.

"How do you know my name? Have you been stalking me or something?"

How could he not know who I was? I started to think it was a joke.

"I'm Larissa. You crashed into me last week, remember?"

"Wow…"

I was really, really confused by then.

"What?"

"It's just that you look a lot different without all the makeup and hair extensions and stuff."

I calmed down. I knew what he meant. I did look a lot different than usual.

"You look…hot." Logan said.

The air got a million times heavier. I did not see that coming!

"Thanks," I said, struggling to hold in my excitement. No guy had ever called me hot before!

"You know, Larissa. I've been thinking, and uh…"

He was going to ask me out! I was sure of it!

"Um, well…What's a vampaneze?" he asked, referring to the shirt I wore when we met.

My heart sank. What a wimp…

"They're a purple skinned, red eyed branch of former vampire brethren who kill when they feed and worship their sex god of a lord, Steve Leonard."

"Oh…" he said. Hey, it wasn't my fault! He wanted to know!

"They're from _Cirque Du Freak."_ I said, trying to keep the conversation going.

"Yeah, I've heard of it. I'm more of a _Harry Potter_ person."

I smiled. It was something we had in common.

"No way! Me too! I freaking cried when Cedric Diggory died!"

"Awesome!" he said, getting up from behind the couch.

I was too excited to stop rambling.

"I have his wand at my apartment! I've seen all six movies at least five times each. I have an entire board of flair dedicated to the Potter Puppet Pals on Facebook, and I think Draco Malfoy is underrated and misunderstood. He's number two on my list for hottest fake criers, and Josh Hutcherson's number one."

I decided to stop. We both had our opportunity to look like an idiot.

"That's really cool." Logan said. "Maybe I could come over one time and see that wand."

"Totally."

I checked the time, and I was off-schedule.

"I gotta go, you know, rooms to clean, places to go."

I walked out, and silently screamed to myself. I still couldn't believe Logan thought I was hot!

-----

Logan's POV

NO! What the hell was wrong with me! It was the perfect moment, and I let it slip through my fingers! Right now, I could have a date with a hot girl who loved _Harry Potter! _ She was perfect for me! Instead, I just looked like a geek by freaking out on her, and she probably thought I was a wimp for not asking her out.

"Hey, has anyone seen my phone?" Kendall asked, breaking my train of thought. "I haven't seen it since rehearsal."

"I think I saw it in the sound booth," James recalled.

"Oh, shit. I forgot I left it there. So, who wants to go get it with me?"

Carlos and James didn't volunteer. We were there almost 24/7, so any chance to get away was valued.

"I'll go." I said. I needed something to get my mind off how much of an idiot I was.

"I mean did you _see_ that gross shade of purple he turned?" Kendall said as we passed the wax museum. "Putting a rabid squirrel in Gustavo's office was the best prank yet!

"Mhm, sure…" I muttered. I got the feeling he was regretting taking me along. "Look, Logan, you've been kinda distant for the past few days. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just have a lot on my mind…"

"Oh, God, is this about that goth girl you met last week?"

"No," I lied. "In fact, I never even thought about her until you brought her up two seconds ago!"

I hoped he was stupid enough to believe my terrible lie.

"Good, that girl was weird."

There was no way Kendall could be right. Larissa was totally worth it. I just wished I knew more about her.

Almost as if the universe heard my wish, I started to hear a guitar. A girl was playing to intro to a song. The girl looked familiar. It was Larissa.

-----

I told Kendall to go on without me. He wasn't all that happy about it. I didn't care. I just got lost in the sound of Larissa's voice. I recognized the song; I heard it one time on the radio. It was_ "_The Only Exception_" _by Paramore.

_When I was younger__  
__I saw my daddy cry__  
__And curse at the wind__  
__He broke his own heart__  
__And I watched__  
__As he tried to reassemble it__  
__And my momma swore that__  
__She would never let herself forget__  
__And that was the day that I promised__  
__I'd never sing of love__  
__If it does not exist_

_But darling_

_You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception_

_Maybe I know, somewhere__  
__Deep in my soul__  
__That love never lasts__  
__And we've got to find other ways__  
__To make it alone__  
__Or keep a straight face__  
__And I've always lived like this__  
__Keeping a comfortable, distance__  
__And up until now__  
__I had sworn to myself that I'm content__  
__With loneliness__  
__Because none of it was ever worth the risk_

_You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception_

_I've got a tight grip on reality, but I can't__  
__Let go of what's in front of me here__  
__I know you're leaving in the morning, when you wake up__  
__Leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream_

_You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception__  
__You are the only exception_

_And I'm on my way to believing__  
__Oh, and I'm on my way to believing_

She finished the song, and as soon as she noticed I was watching her, she blushed and looked away.

"Hey, you're a really great singer." I said.

She thanked me.

"I'm trying to be a pro songwriter, but I can't get a job, so…" She quickly started putting her guitar back in its case.

"A songwriter," I repeated. "That's really cool."

"Yeah, I've written a lot. Mostly love songs."

I smiled at that. It was something we had in common. I liked to write, too. It was mostly just stuff for school and the occasional FanFiction. What can I say? I'm a geek.

"Awesome…do you just write songs?"

"I wrote a play once, too. It was like a modern day Romeo and Juliet. Two opposite people met and fell in love. It was real…sappy." She said it like it was a bad thing. "Nothing you'd be interested in. Too…romantic."

I completely disagreed with her.

"No, I'd like to read it. I love Shakespeare. We could exchange stuff. You can read this Pokemon FanFic I wrote when I was five."

I secretly cursed myself. Way to screw things up. Pokemon FanFiction? Very attractive…

"That would be nice." Larissa said. "I was quite the Pokemon geek, too."

My face lit up. It was something else we had in common.

I was starting to really like Larissa. Her eyes were a window to her soul. She was innocent, yet troubled. I sensed something telling me that she was…different. I couldn't tell how, it was like this…longing for something. When I looked into her eyes, it was like nothing else in the world mattered. I was just drawn to her somehow. Like we were opposite poles and a magnet was pulling us together. I realized that this was another perfect moment. It was now or never.

"Hey, Larissa?"

_Come on, Logan, don't chicken out!_

"Maybe we could...hang out sometime...uh, yeah..."

_DAMN IT! What the hell is wrong with me? _

"Yeah, I'd like that." she said.

She sounded a little disappointed. I really blew it.

She turned around and hurried down the street.

I went the opposite direction and finally caught up with Kendall.

"Who was that?"

"Nobody," I lied again. "Just some random girl…"

I knew he didn't believe me, but he just went along with it.

"Whatever…" he said, and just let it go.


End file.
